CAN TOUR GUIDES PROTECT THE MARINE AND COASTAL ENVIRONMENT FROM MASS TOURISM IMPACTS: SITUATION OF ANDAMAN OCEAN, THAILAND, PRE-COVID-19

This article studies the role of Thai guides in protecting marine and coastal environment against impacts from international tourism, in the Andaman Ocean, Thailand. This is a qualitative study with in-depth interviews of 26 licensed guides that were selected by using purposive and snowball sampling. Quantitative data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, and qualitative data from in-depth interviews and field notes were analyzed with qualitative data analysis. The results show that behaviors affecting marine and coastal environment mostly involve chasing and catching beautiful fish and/or marine animals (76.9%), feeding fish (73.1%), and collecting beautiful stones, rare shells, and/or coral reefs (73.1%). Guides act in the roles of educator, psychologist, entertainer, ambassador, and servant, and protect against impacts to the extent that they can. While some impacts can be avoided, others remain out of scope and control of the guides.

Interconnections between the cultural and creative industries and tourism: challenges in four Ibero-American capital cities

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the European and Latin America urban cultural policies that could enhance cultural and creative sustainable tourism products development. Design/methodology/approach The methodological framework is based on a comparative case study regarding the importance, dynamics and policies associated to cultural and creative tourism in four Ibero-American cities, namely, Brasilia, Buenos Aires, Lisbon and Madrid. Findings This exploratory analysis underlines the growing importance of cultural and creative tourism in the four capital cities. On one hand, cities reveal different tourism impacts and, on the other hand, they are associated to different cultural and creative sector structures. Cities cultural and creative performance put in evidence that sustainable cities index, global talent competitiveness index and cultural and creative cities monitor, tend to position Madrid in the first place followed by, Lisbon, Buenos Aires and Brasilia. Research limitations/implications In general, and despite the importance of space in the creative process, there is little research on the geography of the creative industries and there is a lack of cross-country comparative studies so that it is difficult to assess the particularities of each model of creativity. Practical implications Cities could enhance more efforts in investing, not only in the traditional cultural infrastructures but also on the new forms of culture, new technologies, new makers, new audiences based on their attributes, activities and labels, in a framework of urban sustainable policies based on “innovation,” “inclusiveness” and “interconnectivity.” Originality/value The originality of the paper lies in the comparative analysis of four cities based on cultural and creative sector and tourism interconnections. Simultaneously, it lies in an exploratory model application.

A complexity perspective for antecedents of support for tourism development

PurposeIn this study, the effects of negative tourism impacts, length of residency and nativity on support for tourism development were examined.Design/methodology/approachBecause understanding the attitudes of local people toward tourism support is complex, this study employed both symmetric (PLS-SEM) and asymmetric (fsQCA) approaches from a holistic perspective. A total of 336 individuals from Cappadocia, one of Turkey's most prominent tourist destinations, were surveyed.FindingsAccording to the symmetric method results, respondents' negative perceptions of tourism negatively affect attitudes toward tourism support. Native-born status acts as a moderating variable in the relationship between attitudes toward tourism support and the negative economic impacts of tourism. On the other hand, this study shows that the complex interactions of nativity and the negative impacts of tourism directly affect local people's attitudes toward tourism support.Practical implicationsThis study revealed that practitioners should adopt a comprehensive perspective to understand the attitudes of local people toward tourism support.Originality/valueThis study, in addition to the findings obtained via the symmetric method, reveals the complex interaction of the negative impacts of tourism, thus providing a roadmap to improve local people's attitudes toward tourism support by using asymmetric modeling.

Segmenting local residents by perceptions of tourism impacts in Sapa, Vietnam: a cluster analysis

Purpose The purpose of this study is to employ social exchange and social representation theories to explain Kinh and Ethnic minorities’ perceptions toward tourism development in Sapa. A cluster analysis is used to segment their perceptions based on tourism impacts. Design/methodology/approach The primary data collection involved a survey with local residents in Sapa, Vietnam. Findings The results from cluster analysis separate 357 local residents into three clusters which are supporters, pessimists and neutralists. The supportive cluster comprises mainly young, female and less-educated respondents who support tourism development because of their employment and income; however, the pessimistic cluster which mostly consists of highly educated and elder respondents show more concerns about tourism development. Demographic profiles of respondents are classified in each cluster, so that policymakers can put forward specific policy for each ethnic group. Research limitations/implications The main limitation of this study is the high rate of incomplete responses in the questionnaires from ethnic minority groups. Practical implications Based on the findings of the study, implications are made for tourism planners and policymakers toward a future of more sustainable tourism development in the target context. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to segment the perceptions of Kinh and Ethnic minority groups toward tourism impacts in Sapa, Vietnam.

Heritage Management: Analytical Study of Tourism Impacts on the Archaeological Site of Umm Qais—Jordan

The archaeological site of Umm Qais is a popular tourist destination for both local and foreign tourists who come to appreciate the site’s archaeological history, scenic landscape, and panoramic perspective. The site was the focus of tourism planning, which included the construction of amenities and infrastructure, the creation of tourist circuits, and archaeological management. This development was linked to a rise in visitor numbers as well as the provision of a high level of service, such as parking, tickets, kiosks, restaurants, and cafés, to welcome visitors. The purpose of this study was to examine the impacts of on-site tourist services and infrastructures, as well as those of visitors, and their geographical and temporal scope on the site. The study used a qualitative approach based on case study fieldwork as a research method to achieve this goal. Personal observation, interviews with site-related stakeholders, and a checklist were used to collect data during the fieldwork. Both tourism infrastructure and visitors were proven to have a detrimental influence on tourist attractions. The site’s aesthetic pollution and structural deterioration were caused by tourism services and infrastructure. Graffiti, vandalism, and trash left by visitors exerted strong negative impacts. Furthermore, spatial and temporal negative impacts were determined by the patterns of seasonal movement of visitors and the location of infrastructure. Thus, most of the impacts were concentrated in a small portion of the site, among the western theater, the panoramic view, and the traditional Ottoman village. This research sheds light on these challenges and makes recommendations in the areas of heritage management, tourism, and visitor impact management that may be of interest to on-the-ground decision makers as well as academics.